some kind of magic
by i set my sims on fire
Summary: He thinks she is really very pretty when she smiles at him - Lily, James and seven years.


**Warning: this fic will almost definitely contain clichés and bad language.**

some kind of magic

**one**

James is eleven when he meets her, bright-eyed with messy hair and already best friends with Sirius Black, despite only meeting him twenty minutes ago. She is nervous, and she's clasping the hand of her own best friend, who has greasy black hair and a pale face, and James decides on impulse that he doesn't like him one little bit. She's got long red hair and a pretty face and eyes that captivate him.

And he asks Sirius, 'who's that?' but he just shrugs because it's first year and he has no idea.

He doesn't get her name until the sorting. He's already grinning ear to ear at Sirius's placement in Gryffindor, confident he'll be joining him in a few minutes.

'Evans, Lily,' is called, and James watches as Lily nervously takes her place on the stool and the hat is placed on her head, and GRYFFINDOR.

Her emerald eyes light up and she's smiling all over and he's eleven and he doesn't even know her, so he doesn't quite understand why his stomach does a few backflips when her eyes are shining like that.

Minutes later, the hat barely touches James' head before declaring him Gryffindor, and he catches Sirius' eye and grins. Lily's friend, Severus Snape, is sorted into Slytherin.

Later in the Gryffindor tower, James and Sirius make friends with their dorm mates, Peter Pettigrew and Remus Lupin, and the four of them stay up until the early hours of the morning telling jokes and eating too many sweets left over from the train, and slowly they all bond over a mutual love of pranking, and a mutual decision that Slytherin is full of creeps- namely Severus Snape.

The next day, Lily is in their first Charms class and James can't help noticing how she tucks a strand of vibrant red hair behind an ear and how she listens so earnestly. He can't help but get distracted and begin to piss around with Sirius and Remus and Peter, Flitwick glaring at them and Lily looking irritated when their voices almost over-power Flitwick's. Her hand is raised constantly and Sirius whispers 'nerd', and James laughs nervously.

He's eleven and he sort of likes her, but he's too young and so he throws chewing gum in her long red hair when he sits behind her in Transfiguration, and she hexes him so that he throws up snails, and after classes Severus is always waiting and so Lily stalks off with the Slytherin creep and doesn't give James a second glance.

He's a bit immature and he likes her, so he does absolutely everything he can to piss her off.

**two**

By the end of the first year, James, Sirius, Remus and Peter have established themselves as the Marauders. Second year rolls around too quickly and it quickly becomes obvious that the Marauders are going to be the popular guys in the year. They're surrounded by admirers and friends, and rumours quickly spread that Emma Viney and Annie Sutton both have a thing for James and Sirius and their egos fly up instantly.

They can't help but throw their weight around a bit, and they kind of accidentally maybe turn into bullies. Sirius shoves Snape in the hall as James sneers, 'alright, Snivellus?' and Lily glares at him furiously.

'What do you want, Potter?' and James and Sirius grin.

'Hey, Evans,' Sirius says. 'Still betraying Gryffindor?'

Lily blushes. 'I'm not betraying anyone.'

'Course you are,' James retorts. 'Hanging out with a creepy Slytherin like Snape.'

'I'd rather be friends with him than you,' Lily snaps. 'You lot are nothing but pathetic little bullies.'

'Don't bother with them, Lily,' Snape says, glaring at James and Sirius. 'They're scum.'

'We're scum?' Sirius says, his eyes gleaming. 'You have a lot of nerve, Snivellus-'

'Just get lost!' Lily yells, her green eyes burning now. 'You're bloody pathetic!'

She storms off, pulling Severus by the wrist before an all-out duel begins.

James and Sirius burst out laughing, high-fiving each other.

'You should give Snivellus a break,' Remus says, a little uncomfortably, but Peter just squeals and tells them how cool they are, his eyes wide because they're the Marauders and they're awesome or whatever-

James smirks to himself, watching Lily's vivid long hair disappear around the corner, knowing she'll come around sometime.

**three**

James gets his first girlfriend, Jenny Kerby, before the first week of third year even ends, and he wears his Gryffindor tie loose and carelessly and although he still daydreams about Lily Evans in class, he remains just as nasty to Severus, Lily's sharp tongue always there to defend him.

The Marauders- occasionally with the exception of Remus- spend their time sat at the back of class, firing hexes at Snape when the Professor's back is turned, joking and flirting with girls. James and Sirius are insolent, answering back to their teachers and getting constant detentions. James makes a point of staring at Lily Evans in as many classes as possible, trying to catch her eye and smirking when he winks and turns her cheeks as scarlet as her hair.

He gets bored of Jenny quickly, swapping her for Sarah Hutchings. He and the other Marauders make a not-so accidental habit of screwing over the majority of the girls in their year, and Lily glares at him when he dumps her friend Mary.

Sirius sets his eyes on Lily's best friend, Marlene McKinnon, and so the two of them begin this game of chasing Lily and Marlene shamelessly. They taunt Severus to the point where the majority of Ravenclaw, Gryffindor and several Hufflepuff's only know him as Snivellus- and while they're not exactly proud of it, they show no guilt or remorse.

They pull countless pranks, grinning at Lily and Marlene in the aftermath. Lily glares. Marlene tries not to smile.

James asks Lily out for the first time towards the end of the year, approaching her and Severus whilst they're sat outside, and Lily is reading a book, red hair falling over her pretty face and Severus is swinging his legs back and forth against the brick wall they're sat on.

'Alright, Evans?' James smirks, his hands in his pockets, Sirius sauntering over beside him.

Lily doesn't even look up. 'Piss off, Potter,' she says.

'That's not very friendly,' James grins. 'I'm trying to be nice to you, you know.'

'I'm in the middle of something, Potter. Piss off.'

'Hey, Evans, go out with me,' he says suddenly, and Lily looks up from her book astonished, before her expression quickly switches to angry and she swats him across the chest with her book.

'No,' she snaps. 'Now leave me alone.'

Sirius notices that Severus has gone very white, and laughs, nudging James.

'You getting jealous, Snivellus?' he sneers. 'You fancy little Lilykins, do you?'

'No!' Snape snaps, but he's nervously glancing at Lily, who's face is now on fire.

She quickly mutters an incantation under her breath, and a few moments later Sirius' skin erupts in boils and Lily and Snape run down the hallway, spluttering with laughter.

'Evans! You bitch!'

An all out war begins.

**four**

By fourth year, the four of them have perfected an image. Loosely hung ties, their trousers hanging too low, exposing a few inches of their boxers, much to Lily's disdain.

James barely does a stitch of work. He is too-preoccupied, usually because Lily Evans is sat right in front of him, and he kind of stares at her milky-white neck and the deep red hair that falls around her shoulders.

While he's indeed grown more and more handsome over the years; chiseled features and untidy hair and gorgeous eyes, she's grown into this beautiful girl and he thinks he's probably met his match.

Except, James Potter is used to getting what he wants, even when it comes to girlfriends- no, especially when it comes to girlfriends. And so he asks Lily out countless times, but the answer is always vaguely the same-

'Piss off, Potter.'

'I wouldn't go out with you if you were the last person on the bloody planet.'

'You fucking _disgust_ me, Potter.'

'You're an arrogant pig, Potter, there is no chance in _hell_ I'd ever go out with an asshole like _you_-'

James doesn't give up, though. Lily glares at him from the Quidditch stands, Severus always close by her side and he sneers at the Marauders as if he's something special when he's _not_, and jealousy begins to fuel James' hatred of him.

He doesn't get it, that's all- because he's James Potter and there are girls falling over themselves for him, and his eyes are welcoming and he laughs a lot, and Severus Snape is just a greasy little creep. Lily is his only friend besides a couple of dark-eyed Slytherin assholes who even Lily seems weary of.

And it's just- Lily is _Lily_ and she's almost perfect when she raises her hand in class, or leans over her parchment, her thick hair falling over her almond eyes as she neatly inks down notes. She has more than enough friends and she's the prettiest girl in the year, easily, James thinks- so why _Snivellus_?

After James's disastrous first attempt at asking her out back in third year, Sirius doesn't like Lily Evans much. At all. He more-often-than-not refers to her as a stuck-up bitch under his breath, and sometimes even out loud. James always frowns when he does so.

'Hey, don't call Evans stuck-up,' he snaps. 'She's not a bitch, either.'

His friends just laugh.

'Still chasing after her, eh, Prongs?' Sirius grins.

'What is she, the one that got away?' Remus smiles. 'No offense, mate, but I don't think she'll be your next conquest any time soon.'

James goes red. 'It's not like that,' he argues, but they don't believe him- it's always like that, with James Potter. He asks out the girl, stays with her for a couple of weeks, and then dumps her when he gets bored or spots somebody better looking in the hall.

It's one of the main things Lily seems to despise him for. He didn't _mean_ to screw over Mary McDonald- but the relationship was going nowhere, anyway, as she was too nervous to kiss him and could barely hold up a conversation.

Except, he's a little bit conceited and he takes Lily's hatred for love and her disgust simply as jealousy, and he continues to wink at her in the hall and watch her blush, and make her eyes flash with anger when he throws hexes at Snape on the grounds. He asks her out every other week, even if he's seeing someone else at the time, and she hurls abuse at him with her sharp tongue.

And he just runs his fingers through his hair and grins at her, and she tells him daily that she bloody _hates_ him.

James doesn't mind; he just interprets it as love.

**five**

'Asshole,' James says angrily.

Sirius, Peter and Remus all look up at him, confused James is glaring across the Potions classroom, hazel eyes furious. Lily is sat alone, tendrils of thick dark red hair falling in her face, and across the length of the room, Severus Snape, her usual partner has abandoned her for Avery and Mulciber.

'What?' Peter asks blankly,

'Snape's ditched Evans,' James hisses. 'He can't just _do_ that!'

'Yeah well, that's what she gets for being a _Snake_ lover,' Sirius says darkly. 'Let it go, Prongs.'

James shakes his head. 'I'm going to go and talk to her.'

'_Prongs_,' Remus says, exasperated. 'Lily hates you. You'll only make matters worse.'

'I don't care,' James says decisively. 'Evans looks lonely.'

He crosses the room, slipping into the empty chair beside Lily Evans. So looks up, startled, and then her surprise quickly turns into a glare.

'Potter, what do you want?'

'You look lonely, Evans,' James says. 'Snivellus-' Lily deepens her glare. James hastily corrects himself. '_Snape_ ditched you for those blood-purist wankers again.'

Lily blushes. 'That's none of your business, Potter.'

'You looked upset. I just wanted to-'

'Well, don't!' Lily hisses angrily. 'Just piss off, James. I don't want to speak to you right now.'

James shrugs, wondering back to the desk he shares with Sirius looking a little crestfallen. The marauders laugh, jeering at him and his stupidity- but then James remembers something, and a wide grin spills out over his disheartened face.

'She called me _James_!' he says.

But then, Lily's hatred for James intensifies because Snape called her a mudblood and Lily angrily told James that he'd pushed him to it, and James thought there was always a little less light in her almond eyes after that.

The marauders continue to taunt Snape in the corridors, James still furious and offended on Lily's behalf. She passes them, sometimes, she raises her eyebrows at the stupid pranks and looks disdainfully at the laughing crowds- but she barely glances in Snape's direction before continuing down the hall, still engrossed in conversation with one of her friends.

James loses his virginity to Emily Murphy, keeping her around just for a little bit before switching her with another girl, then another, then another, in a bid to get Lily Evans out of his head.

It doesn't work.

**six**

James is made Quidditch captain with a broad smile on his handsome face. Lily shoots him a disgusted look as he shows off his badge, ignoring the chants and the jeers and the streams of laughter that all erupt from the Gryffindor tower that night, where James throws a party in celebration.

He tops up his drink again, edging away from Amelia Matthews who is a little _too_ close for comfort; Remus is cosying up to some Hufflepuff girl he doesn't know, Sirius is dancing with Marlene McKinnon, and Peter is standing in the corner with a drink in his hand, looking around earnestly.

James looks around, but Lily is nowhere in sight.

He hooks up with Jenny Kerby again, looking straight passed her big blue eyes to scan the room once more for Lily. He finds her eventually, trailing down the stairs with her friend Alice.

Lily catches James's eyes upon her. She blushes and looks away. James grins.

'What?' asks Jenny, uncertainly.

James tells her it's nothing. The party is pretty much over when he catches Lily alone, about to climb the stairs back to her dormitory. The common room is nearly empty, and Sirius, Remus and Peter have all disappeared.

'Evans!' James calls, before she can leave.

Lily turns around, one eyebrow raised. 'Yes, Potter?' she says carelessly.

James pauses, unsure of what to say to her. And then-

'I'm sorry, Evans.'

She blinks. 'You what?'

'I'm sorry. About Sniv- Severus. He was your best friend, hell, if me and Sirius fell out like that, I'd feel like shit. So, I'm sorry.'

Lily shakes her head. Her long hair bounces, tumbling over her shoulders.

James may be the tiniest bit drunk, but he thinks that right here, right now, she looks like the most beautiful girl he has ever seen.

'It was over a year ago, Potter.'

'I never said sorry, though,' he insists. 'And I am. Really.'

Lily gives him a watery smile. 'It's alright, really. And it- It wasn't even totally your fault. Severus had been drifting further and further away from me for- for a while, back then, always with Avery and Mulciber and- it would've happened anyway.'

He wants to kiss her, her lips look so tempting in the dim lamplight of the dead common room. But no- he will not screw this up. He won't.

'I'm sorry anyway,' James says. Then hastily, he adds- 'Lily.'

She looks surprised, but she gives him a tentative smile. 'Thank you, James.'

Lily turns around, continues up the stairs to her dormitory. James watches her leave, watches her hips sway subtly, and her long red hair fall loosely down her back.

They change after that. They become friends, almost. Lily smiles at him in the hall and he plucks up the courage to ask for her help on a Charms essay. He tries his best to concentrate, but their knees keep brushing underneath the table in the library and they are in such a close proximity, his hand accidentally bumps with hers, and he swears he sees the ghost of a blush glitter across her cheeks, vivid red locks falling over her green eyes.

James gets full marks on that essay.

Sirius raises his eyebrows at James's bright eyes, and the way he hasn't hooked up with a girl since that day.

'You're getting your hopes up, mate,' he says. 'Lily's hated you for six years, do you really think that's changed?'

James knows his best mate means no harm, he's just looking out for him- but it irritates him all the same.

'Lily knows I'm a different person now,' he argues.

Except, he isn't really. Any excuse and he'll shoot a hex at Severus Snape in the corridor, he pranks the entire class of first years and sleeps with Megan Cadogan during the summer term.

He doesn't know if Lily knows. If she does, she doesn't care.

James decides she doesn't know.

He asks Lily to Hogsmeade.

'Not as a date,' he says hurriedly. 'Just- like, friendly. A thank you for helping me with my classes this term. And for forgiving me.'

Lily looks amused. 'Not a date. Sure, James. Sounds good.'

And then she wonders away, Marlene and Alice clutching her by the arms and giggling.

They go to Hogsmeade together, James fighting the urge to hold her small, pale hand and stroke the tendrils of red hair out of her face and kiss her right there in front of the whole school. But he doesn't, because it it's not a date and it'd fuck things up and-

Being with Lily is not quite like being with the marauders. They do not spend hours in Zonkos, only twenty minutes because he didn't want to risk boring her, but her eyes are wide with wonder and she's smiling.

He thinks she's really very pretty when she smiles.

She's fun, too, not like some of the other girls he's been with who've just spent hours trying on clothes and asking him if they look fat or not, or the ones who just want to cuddle up in Madam Puddifoots. There have only been a handful of girls he's really enjoyed just hanging out with- Lily is one of them.

He takes her to the Three Broomsticks and they laugh together, talking over two butterbeers.

And then he ruins it all.

It's just she looks so damn pretty in the dim light and she's laughing with him not at him, and that red hair tumbles around her shoulders and frames her heart-shaped face.

She's smiling at him. He leans in and kisses her softly on the lips.

James thinks he may have just dies and gone to heaven. Lily kisses him back, just for a fraction of a second, and then she pushes him away.

'What the fuck, James?!' she snaps, startled. Her green eyes are wide and confused.

'Uh-' he stumbles. He doesn't remember ever being this shy around a girl. 'Sorry.'

'I thought we agreed this wasn't a date!'

'I know, but I still- like you.'

Lily stares at him, wide eyed. 'You still like me? James! I thought that was just to wind up Sev!'

'What?' James says incredulously. 'You thought-?'

'Or if you did like me, you'd get over me. Bloody hell, James, it's been months since you asked me out.'

'Technically,' James stops her, hastily. 'I asked you out three days ago. Y'know. To here.'

'But we agreed- it's not a date!'

'I know!' James snaps. 'I'm sorry, yeah?'

Lily shakes her head. 'Fuck this. I should go. See you around, James.'

'Lily, wait!'

He watches her disappear out of the front door, and glances helplessly at her red-headed figure until she disappears in the crowd of students.

**seven**

Seventh year arrives with a Head Boy badge.

The marauders all fall about laughing when James tells them, and even he feels dazed with surprise. Head Boy? Is this some kind of joke?

Perhaps Dumbledore is insane. Or maybe it is a mistake. Maybe he meant to announce James Gibbons from Ravenclaw as Head Boy, and it was a simple error.

It comes as no surprise to anyone when Lily is made Head Girl. She smiles shyly at James at the station, and his stomach does backflips. They haven't really spoken since their not-date. He remembers punching the wall in anger, Sirius saying 'told you so!' Peter squeaking about other fish in the sea and Remus telling him to move on.

He didn't, still occasionally writing out the initials 'L.E' on scraps of parchment and dreaming of her over the summer.

'Evans,' he nods, coolly, when they find themselves alone in the prefects compartment.

'James,' Lily says desperately. 'Please, lets not go back to the whole surnames thing-'

He looks her up and down, swearing she has grown even more beautiful in the space of six weeks. Her hair, longer and thicker than ever, tumbling down her back and curling towards the end, her skin white and flawless; no spots or blemishes, and those big green eyes that are currently looking in his direction. Pleading.

James sighs. 'Yeah, alright. I'm sorry Ev- Lily.'

She smiles. 'Thank you. I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting you to be Head Boy.'

'Me neither,' he shrugs. 'Sirius and Peter are betting on the odds that it was all a mistake. Peter reckons they mistook me for some other James; Sirius thinks this is Dumbledore's warped sense of humor, and Remus rolled his eyes and told them to trust Dumbledore's decision.'

Lily laughs. 'Such supportive friends you have.'

'They mean well.'

'So, what does this mean? You going to cut the pranking? The bullying?'

'I'm not a bully!' James protests. 'I'm over all that, Lily. Really. And the pranking? Fuck being Head Boy, I'd rather spend my last year having a laugh and partying.'

Lily raises one eyebrow. 'Well,' she says. 'Looks like we're in for an interesting year.'

It turned out Dumbledore had made no mistake, but James stuck to his word; he continued to pull pranks, earn himself countless detentions, drink too much, hook up with too many girls and behave as badly as ever.

'Mr Potter,' Professor McGonagall would say, shaking her head. 'Why Professor Dumbledore appointed you as Head Boy, I will never know.'

Lily and James tried their best to shy away from the coming war. Severus was a changed man, Lily told James sadly, time and time again. Snape was spending the majority of his time in the Slytherin Dungeons with Avery and Mulciber and other thugs, among other things like glaring at the marauders and staring longingly at the back of Lily's head and the nape of her white neck, watching her laugh with James. Other times, her face was in full view, and he watched Lily as her fingers brushed against James's, and the way her cheeks would grow as red as her hair.

When James caught Severus looking, he'd smirk, and look into Lily's little green orbs and whisper in her ear.

Lily and James spent more and more time together, she blushed when their knees brushed together, giggled when he whispered in her ear.

They are sat out by the Black Lake when Lily asks him.

'James,' she says hesitantly. 'James- did you really like me?'

He glances at her, surprised. 'Yeah,' he says. 'Yeah, I do. Why?'

'You do?' she stares at him. 'Still?'

'Lily,' James says impatiently. 'I've liked you since first year.'

'First year?!'

'Yeah. Why?'

'But you were always so horrible to me!' she protests. 'You stuck gum in my hair before we'd ever even spoken!'

'I was eleven,' James points out. 'A kid. I thought you were pretty. I was jealous of Snivellus. Again, why are you asking?'

Lily's cheeks glow.

'Because-' she stutters. 'Because- I kind of liked it when you kissed me last year. And I kind of really regret pushing you away.'

James looks up, a grin on his face and his eyes lit up. 'Seriously?!'

Lily nods nervously, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. James leans in towards her, and kisses her softly on the mouth. And this time, she doesn't push him away.

James pulls apart quickly. 'Lily Evans,' he says, clearing his throat. 'Will you go out with me?'

Lily smiles. 'You have no idea how much I've missed hearing you say that,' she says, before leaning in and sealing her answer with another kiss.

**Whether you liked this or not, I'd really appreciate it if you left a review!**


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